A thief who smashed his way into an Arbroath man’s flat and plundered his wardrobe was snared by a bloodstain left at the scene.
John Galloway, who has an extensive criminal past, cut himself as he scrambled through the bathroom window of the Sidney Street property.
The unemployed 36-year-old broke into the ground-floor flat while its owner was out visiting his mother
Galloway, who was spotted using a wheelie bin to reach the window, made off with bundles of clothes, cash and DVDs.
He appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted raiding the flat on June 9 2020.
The court heard he had 48 previous criminal convictions for offences including public disorder, housebreaking, assault and theft.
Galloway, of James Street, Arbroath, was warned he could be locked up.
He told the sheriff: “I am not the same man you see in those papers.”
Owner was away for an hour
Fiscal depute Marie Lyons told the court: “The property in question is a one-bedroom, ground floor flat in a block of four.
“At about 1pm, occupant Karl Simpson left his address to go and meet his mother.
“As he left, he made sure that his flat was secure.”
Ms Lyons said: “He returned about an hour later and put his key in the door.
“As he did, he noticed the lock did not click when he turned the key – as if the door was already unlocked.
“He went inside and immediately noticed some of his clothes were missing from the washing he had left hanging up in the living room to dry.
“Mr Simpson checked the rest of the flat and found that his wardrobe had been emptied and most of his clothes had been taken.
“He also noticed that £150 cash had been taken from the pocket of a hoodie that had been hanging on his living room door.”
Two DVD boxsets were also missing, the fiscal depute said.
Camouflage jacket
“Mr Simpson entered has bathroom and noticed the bottom pane of the window was smashed.
“The window was wide open.”
Police were called to the property, Ms Lyons said.
“Officers observed the damage to the bathroom window and smashed glass which was left in the bath.
“They also noticed blood on the side of the bath.”
The prosecutor told the court: “While they were at the flat, scenes of crime officers were made aware of an anonymous call to police.
“The caller stated she had witnessed a break-in at the property at about 1.35pm.
“She said she saw someone standing on a purple bin to gain access to a window.”
The intruder was described as white, stocky and wearing a “khaki combat-style jacket”.
Ms Lyons said that Galloway was traced by police, later that evening, in connection with an unrelated matter.
“At this time, it was noted he was wearing a camouflage jacket,” she said.
DNA hit
Some time later, police got a hit on the blood stain left on the bath.
“The blood swab was linked to the legally held DNA sample of the accused,” the prosecutor said.
Sheriff Euan Duthie deferred sentence for background reports.
“I should say that a prison sentence is something I will be contemplating,” he said.
Released on bail, Galloway told the sheriff: “I am not the same man you see in those papers.”
